Record season for East Lincoln WR Earnhardt

Thursday

The strong connection between East Lincoln quarterback Garrett Young and receiver Jesse Earnhardt is 10 years in the making.

DENVER — The strong connection between East Lincoln quarterback Garrett Young and receiver Jesse Earnhardt is 10 years in the making.

“We’ve been outside throwing the football since we were 7 years old,” Young said.

That’s when they started playing organized football together at the Optimist Club, and their team even went undefeated two years in a row.

It’s no wonder Young and Earnhardt — now high school seniors — have become the most productive quarterback-receiver combination in Lincoln County history while leading East Lincoln to perhaps its best season ever. That season continues Friday in Denver, where the Mustangs (14-0) host Madison (13-1) in the 2A Western final.

In what’s been a record-setting season for Young, it stands to reason that one of his receivers would also vault to the top of the record book. That receiver has been Earnhardt, who last week broke the Lincoln County single-season receiving yardage record. Earnhardt has caught 66 passes for 1,244 yards and 14 touchdowns.

The county’s previous yardage record was 1,202 yards by East Lincoln’s Keith Rendleman in 2008. Earnhardt surpassed that mark late in the second quarter against Thomasville last week on a play that set up a touchdown that gave the Mustangs a 14-0 halftime lead.

“The pass and catch that got me the record — I’ll never forget that pass and catch,” Earnhardt said. “It was a 42-yard catch. He had me lined up by myself and it was a quick fade. (Young) threw it up, he was counting on me to go up and get it, and that’s what I did.”

Earnhardt, a 6-foot, 160-pound senior who isn’t related to the Earnhardt family of NASCAR fame — or at least not closely — has been a versatile receiver for the Mustangs. He usually lines up in the slot, but the coaching staff moves him around to different spots in the spread formation. Young considers Earnhardt a vertical threat more than anything.

“He’s very fast and he’s deceptively strong,” Young said. “He’s a very strong guy. It’s not very noticeable out there because he looks kind of small, but he can get off the jam and run right past you. They try to jam him and they don’t realize how strong he is and he just blows right past them.”

Head coach Mike Byus said Earnhardt runs routes well, catches the ball well and, as a bonus, has speed to run past defenders.

“Jesse does everything well,” Byus said. “First of all, he practices every play in practice. What sets him apart: He’ll not only practice all the offensive plays, he runs the scout team every time. He’s been on our scout team all year. He doesn’t take 20 minutes off when we’re running on team defense.”

With Earnhardt’s help, East Lincoln’s offense has gotten its way most of the season, averaging 42.7 points. The Mustangs have reached at least 33 points every week with two exceptions: the 13-8 win against Lincolnton when Young suffered a game-ending injury early and last week’s 28-12 victory over Thomasville. Yardage-wise, the Mustangs average 417.5 yards — 269.2 through the air.

“It starts up front with the O-line,” Earnhardt said. “They do a good job every week of giving (Young) time so he can make his reads. He’s a distributor, he gets it to us and we try to take care of it from there.”

Earnhardt showed his potential last season when he caught 41 passes (second on the team) for 465 yards (third) and five touchdowns (third). He took the offseason seriously and is glad to see his work paying off as the Mustangs play for a regional championship this week.

“My season last year was good. I wasn’t disappointed in the end, but I knew I had more in me,” Earnhardt said. “I knew I wanted to come out my senior year and give it all I’ve got and leave nothing on the field.”

Phillip Gardner: 704-869-1843; twitter.com/gazettephil

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